What happens
Ranger Bill, a forest ranger, is at the ranger station on a bitterly cold day with his partner Stumpy and young helper Henry. Freddie Yates persuades Henry to go ice fishing on the Shady River, and the two boys go off together. Later, Bill drives onto the frozen river to check on Henry and Freddie after hearing that some boys were playing a chase game nearby. The ice is thinner than it looks, and Bill's car breaks through. Henry and the others are shaken, and the story shows how they react to the danger and to what they fear has happened.
A ranger station and the frozen Shady River near a small town, in deep winter.
Characters: Ranger Bill, Stumpy Jenkins, Henry, Freddie Yates
Listen for: Listen for Stumpy's jokes, the boys' talk on the frozen river, and the moment the ice gives way under Bill's car.
Written from the episode itself; it never gives away the ending. Every recording is remastered for the stream: cleaned of rumble, hiss and mains hum (and the old TV whine where we found it), then levelled in two passes to steady broadcast loudness, so one show is never quieter than the next.